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MetroSports Magazine National Collegiate Table Tennis Association 2016 Northeast Championship

March 2016

Baruch B.U. Brandeis Brown Columbia F.I.T. Harvard N.Y.U. Rutgers S.U.N.Y Stony Brook UConn

Contents Photo: Henry Lee

March 2016 2 About the WTTC 4 About the NCTTA 8 Women’s Team 10 Coed Team 14 Men’s Singles 16 Women’s Singles 18 Mishel Levinski Featured Male Athlete 20 Baruch College

MetroSports Magazine accepts and welcomes photos, short articles, opinions and letters from our readers. The Contents of MetroSports Magazine consist of copyrightable and/or copyrighted material and cannot be reproduced without the express written consent of the publishers. 2016 NCCTA Northeast Championship Issue Publisher:

New York Sports Photo Group

Writers:

Rahul Acharya, Andy Kanengiser, William McGimpsey, Warren Rosenberg

Photography: Henry Lee, Glen Randmer, Warren Rosenberg, Will Shortz, Clark Thompson Edited By:

Will Shortz

Proofreader: Rahul Acharya, Melissa Tougas www.MetroSportsMag.com (c) MetroSports Magazine Cover Photo: Henry Lee

22 Guannan Liu Featured Female Athlete 24 New York University 26 Columbia University 28 Rutgers University 30 Harvard University 31 Yale University 32 Univ of Connecticut 34 Brandeis University 36 Brown University 38 Boston University 40 SUNY Stony Brook 42 Coach Interviews F.I.T., N.Y.U.

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World-Class Sports Facility in Pleasantville by Bill McGimpsey

What is the No. 1 sport in the world in terms of individual participation? You might expect it to be golf or tennis. Not so. It’s table tennis. Best estimates of registered participants for golf and tennis are only about 20% of that for table tennis. It’s not even close. In China, where they call it ping pong, there are about 300 million registered players. When you get that many human beings doing anything, the best are going to be very good. Of the top ten players in the world, at least half are Chinese. How is table tennis doing in the USA? Well around here very well. That is since the Westchester Table Center at 175 Tompkins Avenue in Pleasantville, NY opened in 2011. This first class facility is said by some to be the best table tennis club in the country. It has 19 tables and is open 7 days a week. Generally there is a parallel social dimension to table tennis in America. In fact it is not uncommon to find a table or two stuck in a spare room at the back of a sports bar, where patrons can try out their skills against other home basement trained pongers between beers. By contrast, the Westchester Table Tennis Center is a serious sports establishment. It is owned and operated by Will Shortz, who is the editor of New York Times crossword puzzle and himself an excellent table tennis player and resident of Pleasantville. The club has members who could be classified as beginners, intermediate and top notch, all playing there at any time. Because of the number of tables, there is rarely a need to wait. The great thing about the sport of table tennis is that the window for serious participation is one of the longest of any sport. You will find kids sometimes

younger the 10 years old who are so good they can only play in the higher rated events in tournaments. You also will see seniors still playing against youth as well as competing in their own age limiting group. On any given day you might find Kai Zhang, a top rated Junior in America, practicing on the table next to you. So how does table tennis rate on the financial scale of things? Golf and tennis will cost you serious dough if you want to participate in the best facilities. Table tennis has these other sports easily beaten for value. For example, suppose you and a friend decide to come over to the Pleasantville Center for a day of fun. If you wanted to, you could play up to 12 hours for the current hefty fee of $10 each. How far would $10 get you in golf and tennis? Or you could come and watch at one of the monthly tournaments held at the Center. Any given month you can see top rated players, both American and foreign, compete. For example, Eugene Wang of Ottawa Canada, the top rated player in North America and twice winner of the US Open, has won the Westchester Open four times. Damien Provost of France has also won it four times and our top rated member, junior Kai Zhang, has won it 11 times. And what would it cost you to watch these world class athletes compete in the Open final live at Pleasantville? If you are a tournament participant - nothing. That’s right, zilch. If you are just a humble observer, then currently there is a charge of $15 to see all the premier event finals. So what are you waiting for? Come on down.

Photo: Henry Lee

Since opening in 2011, the Westchester Table Tennis Center has been established as one of the premier table tennis facilities in the country: • 19 tables with ample-sized courts • Professional lighting, flooring, and equipment • High ceiling (good for hitting those hard-to-return lobs) • Open hours seven days a week (until 11 every night) • Training programs for all skill levels, kids and adults alike • Monthly tournaments with over $5,000 in prizes, drawing players from across the U.S. and around the world During the past three years we’ve hosted the North America Cup, the North American Championship, and the Grand Final of the North American Tour. We’ve seen some great play. So when we were asked to host the 2016 Northeast Championship of the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association, it took us only a few seconds to say yes. We wanted to introduce this fine group of young players to our club and do something good for the sport besides. The result did not disappoint. Over two days, Feb. 27-28, the top collegiate players from New York, New Jersey, and New England showed their stuff and proved that table tennis in the Northeast is some of the best in the country. On the following pages are photos, results, a few interviews, and tournament reports in this first-of-akind issue of MetroSports Magazine. Thanks to Warren Rosenberg and all the photographers and writers who made this happen. I hope you enjoy this keepsake. (And good luck to all the winners at the upcoming Nationals!) Will Shortz Owner, Westchester TTC March 5, 2016

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2016 Northeast Championship

This Is Not Your NCAA ! Pleasantville, N.Y.

The weekend of February 27-28 brought some of the most talented collegiate table tennis players from some of the most prestigious colleges and universities in the northeastern United States to the Westchester Table Tennis Center in Pleasantville, NY, for the 2016 National Collegiate Table Tennis Association’s (NCTTA) Northeast Championship tournament.

Over 90 collegiate athletes from Baruch College, Boston University, Brown University, Columbia University, Fashion Institute of Technology, Harvard University, New York University, Rutgers University, S.U.N.Y Stony Brook, University of Connecticut and Yale University competed in individual men’s and women’s divisions, and in team competition for co-ed team and women’s team divisions.

Fifty-nine male and 32 female competitors competed in the weekend-long event fielding 11 coed teams, 5 women’s teams, 24 men’s singles players and 11 women’s singles players. The competing athletes covered the range of USATT rankings with player ratings ranging from 500 through 2,542. Thirteen players heald ratings of 2,000 or above.

See More Tournament Photos at www.nyspg.com

Photo: Clark Thompson

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NCTTA Leaders Advance Collegiate Table Tennis By Andy Kanengiser NCTTA Media Chairman The National Collegiate Table Tennis Association is the name of the all-volunteer organization governing this fast-paced Olympic sport at more than 150 colleges across the USA and Canada. There’s no fancy headquarters or huge staff for this dedicated group that oversees teams, recruits squads and works with corporate sponsors to improve collegiate tournaments year after year. Schools stretching from NYU and Harvard to Southern California & UCLA, from Texas Wesleyan, Mississippi College, and Missouri’s Lindenwood University all the way north to the University of Toronto are active NCTTA members with a long list of accomplishments. NCTTA leaders will orchestrate the action as more than 250 of the best collegiate players in North America compete at the 2016 TMS College Table Tennis Championships in Round, Rock, Texas. It’s a short 15-mile journey from the capital at Austin, home of the University of Texas. “We are delighted to return to Texas for the national championships, and we’ve really enjoyed showcasing our sport in

the Lone Star State in recent years,’’ said NCTTA President Willy Leparulo. “We anticipate another terrific tournament in late March as we work with the Round Rock Convention & Visitors Board and our all-star lineup of sponsors.’’the Lone Star State in recent years,’’ said NCTTA President Willy Leparulo. “We anticipate another terrific tournament in late March as we work with the Round Rock Convention & Visitors Board and our all-star lineup of sponsors.’’ The tournament is set for March 25-27, 2016 in a Texas city with a solid reputation for hosting premier sporting events. Like the entire NCTTA leadership team, Leparulo stays busy at his day job as a staff member at Florida State University. The FSU graduate also serves as coach of the FSU Seminoles table tennis team on the Tallahassee campus. Volunteers like Willy and his wife, Shelly, leave their day jobs across the USA & Canada to serve at NCTTA divisional, regional and national tournaments from fall to spring. A strong team of NCTTA’s major tournament sponsors helps advance the game at college campuses. They include: TMS International,

tthe marketing arm of the International Table Tennis Federation, Double Fish that provides the official game balls and JOOLA, the table and equipment manufacturer. PepPod, the Colorado-based company producing sport drinks, and Newgy Industries that supports the NCTTA’s scholarship program, are also vital components of the team.

“This year’s tournament in Texas will again feature some outstanding college players who are good enough to play on Olympic teams,’’ Leparulo said. “Come join us for three days as NCTTA studentathletes dazzle fans with their powerful slams, amazing serves and wicked spins. We expect our fan-friendly sport will continue to grow for years to come.’’

NCTTA roots extend back to 1992 as the League of Northeast Intercollegiate Table Tennis. Over the past decade, national tournaments have taken hundreds of NCTTA players to Eau Claire, Wisconsin (in 2015), Monroeville, Pennsylvania (in 2014) and Rockford, Illinois in 2013. In April 2012, Plano, Texas hosted the NCTTA national championships. The 2016 tournament features many interesting story lines. After 11 consecutive years as national coed team champion, Texas Wesleyan’s impressive squad was edged in April 2015 in Wisconsin by longtime rival Mississippi College. Moments after that stunning loss, Texas Wesleyan Coach Jasna Rather promised to work hard to regain the title for the TWU Rams in 2016. With more than 30 players on the roster, the Texas Wesleyan roster resembles the United Nations with standout players from around the globe. Led by Coach & Captain Cheng Li, MC’s mighty squad is dominated by stars from China, where table tennis is king.

MetroSports Magazine Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Will Shortz

. Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Team Event

Tournament Champions 1st: New York University 2nd: Fashion Institute of Technology Participating Teams -Columbia University -Fashion Institute of Technology -Harvard University -New York University -University of Connecticut

Photo: Glen Randmer

9 Photo by Clark Thompson. Clarkshots.com 5

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Photo: Henry Lee

Co-Ed Team Event Tournament Champions 1st: Baruch College 2nd: New York University 3rd: Columbia University Participating Teams -Baruch College -Brandeis University -Boston University -Brown University -Columbia University -Harvard University -New York University -Rutgers University -SUNY Stonybrook -Yale University -University of Connecticut

Photo: Henry Lee

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Photo: Will Shortz

Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Singles Event Tournament Champions 1st: Mishel Levinski (Baruch College) 2nd: Guangyue Li (New York University) 3rd: Charles Deng (Brown University) 4th: Justin Kung (Columbia University) 5th: Josue Layuno (Univ of Connecticut) 6th: Ali Javaheri (SUNY Stonybrook) 7th: Angus Fong (Yale University) 8th: Sathya Ganesh (New York University) Photo: Glen Randmer

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Photo: Warren Rosenberg

Photo: Will Shortz

Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Singles Event Tournament Champions 1st: Guannan Mandy Liu (Fashion Institute of Technology) 2nd: Vanessa Petroj (University of Connecticut) 3rd: Nancy Zhou (Brown University) 4th: Xiaoling Qiang (New York University)

Photo: Glen Randmer

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An Interview With Men’s Singles Champion Mishel Levinski 20 year old Mishel Levinski immigrated to the U.S. about four years ago when his family chose to relocate. Originally from Beer Sheva, Israel, Mishel had already accomplished a lot in terms of table tennis before he moved here to be with his relatives. He had climbed up the ladder from the Israeli Cadet National Team to the Junior Team at the young age of just 12. In fact, he continued to play at the national level right until the time that he left the country in 2011. I hope you enjoy getting to know Mishel! Quick facts about Mishel Levinski: Highest USATT rating 2542 (currently) Israel Junior National Team Member (2007 - 2011) 2010 Israel Junior National Champion Plays for Baruch College 1. You are at your highest USATT rating currently. Tell us what you’ve been up to in terms of table tennis to see this big leap. I think that I have been able to improve my mental game. Mentality is a much bigger part of the game than most people think. I’ve been able to concentrate more and stay sharp. 2. Tell us about how you got started with table tennis. My dad, who plays as well, gave me the opportunity to fall in love with the game. From the time I was very little, he would

let me play with his paddle. It was at the age of 7 when I actually started playing and practicing. It has been such an honor for me to be introduced to this sport. 3. What equipment do you currently use? Blade: Timo Boll ALC Forehand rubber: Tenergy 05 Backhand rubber: Tenergy 05 4. How often do you currently play and train? Up until two months ago, I was practicing everyday. Now that I’m busy with school, I can only get in serious practice about once a week. 5. What are your short-term and long-term goals with regards to table tennis? My short-term goal is to get to the top 15 in the country, as well as to qualify for the U.S. National Men’s Team next year. My long-term goal is to hopefully win the National Championship and represent U.S. in the Olympics. 6. What is the most memorable moment of your table tennis career so far? It would have to be the 2010 European Youth Championships in Turkey. It was the last and deciding doubles match against Croatia. My partner, Itamar Avramov, and I were down 8 - 10 in the fifth game, but managed to win 15 - 13 to earn a spot in the 16 best countries. This was the first time

By Rahul Acharya - Reprinted from Pongtalk With the Stars

that Israel had earned this place in the last 15 years. 7. You play collegiate table tennis at Baruch. How is that experience? How is it different from playing in club tournaments? It is a great experience that allows me to meet a lot of different players and styles. My team members love to learn and are getting better each time. The team concept is what makes it so much more interesting and fun. We gather together, bonded and ready to win as a team. 8. If you could go back in time and get a “do-over” for any one match from any tournament that you have ever played, which one would that be? Why? It would have to be the Under 16 semifinals match against Itamar Avramov at the 2010 Israeli National Championship. Avramov was in the top 20 European Juniors at that time. I was leading 2 - 1 and 10 - 7 in the 4th game. Knowing that I was winning, I got too happy and relaxed and ended up losing 2 - 3. It would have been a great achievement for me to have won this match at that time. 9. Who is your favorite international table tennis player? Why? Jan Ove Waldner has always been my role model. I loved his technique and his smart play ever since I was a little kid. He didn’t use much power, but focused on ball placement instead. My style of play is similar to his.

10. Couple of rapid-fire questions: Talent or hardwork? Talent, but a combination of both is what allows me to play my best game. Skills or Confidence? I would say, confidence in your skills. 21-point games or 11-point games? 11-point games. I only had the opportunity to play 21-point games for few years. The 11-point game makes it quick and every point matters. Poly ball or Celluloid ball? Celluloid because it was a challenge for me to adjust to plastic. More drills or more matches? Matches are the only way to be exposed to all the elements of table tennis together at the same time. Give a point at 10-0, or not? Yes, as a sign of respect. Off the table, we are still friends. A player should never try to embarrass another player. To cho, or not to cho? That would depend on the match and the situation. I don’t think it is wrong, but it has to be appropriate. The goal should always be to boost oneself, and not to intimidate the opponent. 11. What do you like to do when you are not playing table tennis? I love to travel at every chance I get. I enjoy learning about different places, people, and cultures. 12. Anything else that you would like to add? I would like to thank Nison Aronov. Without him and his support, I would have most likely quit the sport by now and only focused on school. So, I am very thankful and appreciate all of his support. Also, thank you, Rahul.

MetroSports Magazine Photo: Clark Thompson

Ka Wing Chan Arvis Chen Matthew Hargraves Mishel Levinski Sean Reddy Can Wang Sammy Zheng

Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Will Shortz

Photo: Clark Thompson

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Women’s Singles Champion GUANNAN (MANDY) LIU Degree: Bachelor’s Major: Fashion Business Management Graduating Year: 2019 Hometown: Canton (Guang Zhou), China Style of Play: Counter driver Handed: Right Grip: Shakehand Blade: Stiga Forehand rubber: DHS Hurricane 3 Backhand rubber: TSP Spectol (short pips) 1. Tell us about how you started playing table tennis. I started playing table tennis because my grandma is a big fan of table tennis. 2. How often do play and train? Once a week. 3. What do you most like about table tennis? I like table tennis because it is a really healthy sport which makes me sweat a lot. Photo: Henry Lee

4. Tell us about your most memorable collegiate match. I enjoyed every match that I played at the fall divisional last semester because it was my first collegiate tournament. I was very nervous at the beginning, but I did very well after I played few matches. 5. Personal rival: Since this is my first year playing NCTTA, I don’t have any rivals, but I was most worried about playing Neha Arggarwal of Columbia University since our ratings are so similar. 6. Favorite player: Fan Zhendong because we used to train together when we were younger.

This article was reprinted from the website of the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association with permission.

Photo: Warren Rosenberg

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MetroSports Magazine Photo: Warren Rosenberg

Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Will Shortz

Photo: Glen Randmer

Weitao Dong Sathya Ganesh Michelle Leung Guangyue Li Lian Li Liying Li Lance Liu Michelle Luo Xiaoling Qiang Megan Sang Joanna Song Rita Zhang

MetroSports Magazine Photo: Warren Rosenberg

Photo: Will Shortz Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Will Shortz

Photo: Warren Rosenberg

Vaidehi Dalmia Lauren Hayashi Gabrielle Juan Chanul Kim Justin Kung Nathan Kung Alison Wu Ye Zhang Bingcong Zhu

MetroSports Magazine Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Warren Rosenberg

Li Can David Gifford Ethan Murad Brian Qiu Calven Quach

Photo: Clark Thompson

Jia Xin Jessica Liang Jing Jing Lin Guannan Mandy Liu Daisy Ruiz

29 Photo: Warren Rosenberg

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Photo: Will Shortz

Photo: Clark Thompson

Austin Duenas Alex Kahng William Xiao Jen Xu Jessie Zhang Yueyi Zhao

Photo: Clark Thompson

Narek Alexanian Subhajyoti Chaudhuri Angus Fong Mason Ji Raktim Roy Joshua Surya

Photo: Clark Thompson

MetroSports Magazine Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Glen Randmer

Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Warren Rosenberg

Cody Hatcher Josue Layuno Aria Lee Vanessa Petroj Mary Ward William Zhang

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Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Henry Lee

Photo: Warren Rosenberg Photo: Henry Lee

Ricardo Aguayo Xinyue Li Lan Ngo Duong Nguyen Tian Xu

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Photo: Warren Rosenberg

Photo: Glen Randmer

Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Glen Randmer

Samuel Chan Brandon Chen Charles Deng Michael Markell Masahiro Nakanishi Nancy Zhou

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Photo: Warren Rosenberg

Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Glen Randmer

Photo: Warren Rosenberg

Kevin Chan Larry Cheung Xiuyi Song M WonJae Yang

MetroSports Magazine Photo: Clark Thompson

Photo: Clark Thompson

Xiangyu Deng San Koko Htet Ali Javaheri Cheng Ji Sho Miyazaki Jiazhou Wang

41 Photo: Warren Rosenberg

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One-on-One with F.I.T Coach Wayne Chin by Rahul Acharya

1. Tell us about your background in table tennis. I’ve been playing TT in one form or another ever since President Nixon went to China and China started sending out sports films as cultural exchange. I didn’t get serious about it until I got to college and eventually to Rutgers in NJ and ended up running the club. Princeton was down the road, and they held the grandfather tournament of the NCTTA, the Princeton Intercollegiate Table Tennis Championships. In the summers their club had a Chinese coach that ran clinics for the club and the local kids. And that’s when I got my first formal training. In the mean time I spent a lot of time at the New Jersey Table Tennis Club in Westfield playing and sharpening my game. After gradu-

ation, like many Americans, I went to China to teach English and got training at the Guangzhou Part-time Sports School. In the TT world, there are always clinics and camps. So in that great journey of table tennis I’ve gotten training from a Czech coach who guested at New Jersey Table Tennis Club, and spent a week in Greece in a camp run by the Greek national champion, and all the other nooks and crannies where tips, and skills can be picked up. So I’ve developed an old-school pen-hold pips with a classic block, but with an added RPB. It’s a niche, but very effective. Wherever I travel, I take my paddle and see if there is a place to play. It’s connectedness through our beloved sport. 2. Tell us about your coaching career in general and specifically at NYU. I’ve always helped run TT clubs in one form or another, at SUNY Stony Brook, Rutgers, the NJTTC as a trustee, and I am the one man band at FIT. FIT is not similar to most NCTTA schools. It is varsity sports, so there are no club officers. So there’s a lot to do, a budget to run, and administrative tasks that have deadlines, and of course wrangling young folks to get them to do what has to be done and going in the same direction. FIT is unique school. It has a small population and one that is about 80% female, and despite Title IX, competitive sports participation is still primarily male. And on top of that TT is not at the top of the list. So you can see there are recruiting challenges. But what I have to say is that I owe a large debt to my Athletics Director, Kerri-Ann Mctiernan. When I proposed a TT club while I was working IT at FIT, she saw the potential in it and decided to fund it as varsity sports.

3. What does it take to be a good coach? Observation and articulation, and of course patience. Coaching is teaching, and teaching requires articulation, the ability to convey thoughts and ideas in a way that the student is receptive to it. And to find that way sometimes require innovation and improvisation. You can’t make things happen in someone. They happen in their own time and their own accord. So it’s not about the best player or the highest rating. 4. What makes coaching so enjoyable for you? I like my students and we have fun together. Like almost all coaches we also have other jobs. I also coach middle school students in an after-school program. It’s a beautiful thing. I get paid for having fun! 5. What qualities do you most admire in a player (student)? What I care about in my program is dedication, that they show up and practice and put in time and effort into learning new skills and supporting their team mates in their efforts. I try and inculcate into the FIT students attention to detail, and some kind of athletic focus in their future lives as adults, especially for young women.

Rahul Acharya is Director of the Downtown NYC Division of the National Collegiate Table Tennis Association and publisher of the online blog Pong Talk with the Stars

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Henry Lee

Clark Thompson

Henry Lee

Glen Randmer

Warren Rosenberg

One-on-One with N.Y.U Coach Hiroka Ooka by Rahul Acharya

1. Tell us about your background in table tennis. I started playing table tennis at age of 6. I was China Junior Champion at age of 12. I moved to Japan at 16 and was Japan’s national high school & college champion. I was also on Japanese Women’s National Team and retired in 2009. 2. Tell us about your coaching career in general and specifically at NYU. I have been coaching at NYU for almost 4 years and before that I used to coach at different clubs in the New York City area. 3. What does it take to be a good coach? Each player is unique and has a different

personality. In order to be a good coach, you really need to understand each player’s needs and work with them differently. More importantly, you need to work with your students when they have problem so that you can build trust. 4. What makes coaching so enjoyable for you? It is very satisfying to see them improve and start to feel more and more confident. 5. What qualities do you most admire in a player (student)? Hardwork.